News

London,

28

December

2008

|

00:00

Europe/London

Haggerston opens new ‘Super Studio’ for learning

Haggerston School launched it’s new ‘Super Studio’ (Tuesday 16 December), introducing the innovative Project Based Learning (PBL) pilot that is an integral part of the Key Stage 3 curriculum, which allows students to develop as independent learners.

A welcoming group of Year 7 students were on hand to greet guests and provide tours of the new PBL studio, a gym converted into an interactive learning space. The young guides offered an insight into the activities conducted in each brightly coloured area, demonstrating their enthusiasm for the scheme that will be trialled at the secondary school in Weymouth Terrace over the next two years.

The pilot scheme has been running at the school since the beginning of term in September. Every Friday half of the Year 7 students get to spend the whole day in the new learning space, which they helped to design. Students work collectively and independently through projects, tackling different subjects each visit.

Jeanine Jarvis, 11, said: “We really look forward to using the studio every other week. It’s much better than working in the classroom and we enjoy expressing ourselves in this fun, learning space.”

Staff at the school have also embraced the pilot scheme and found that it gives students new ways to discuss and consider their learning and develop skills that can be transferred to other subjects.

“Adults have come together and listened to what is needed to help our young people to learn, and the studio provides more space and resources for students to develop as independent learners,” head teacher Maggie Kalnins explained during her presentation to guests.

“Teachers have taken on the new methods of teaching and learning wholeheartedly and the students absolutely love what they are achieving through PBL,” she added.

Haggerston is one of a small number of schools across the country to have introduced PBL, allowing students to access the curriculum and develop skills for personal learning and thinking and time management through projects, which have a strong humanities element underpinned by literacy, numeracy and ICT.